Press Release

VeriSign® EV SSL Customers in Australia Forecast Business Growth

Sydney, 18th August, 2009 - Online Retailer Exhibition and Conference - As Australia's economy has peaked and ebbed over the past 12 months during the global recession, customers of VeriSign, the trusted provider of Internet infrastructure services for the networked world, are forecasting an average of 10 per cent business growth in Australia in the coming year, according to new research undertaken by Galaxy.

The survey of 96 VeriSign Extended Validation (EV) Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) customers investigated the impact of visible security solutions on conversion rates, growth in revenues and their customers' confidence, demonstrating that online enterprises are looking to security to help drive bottom-line success.

Whilst almost all Australian IT managers (94 per cent) are concerned about online security, the biggest challenge for businesses is keeping costs contained (53 per cent) and maintaining a high quality of service to customers (52 per cent). Surprisingly, surviving the economic downturn was ranked low on the list at number seven, which is an indication of the confidence these businesses are experiencing in sales and growth.

Despite economic concerns, online shoppers in Australia shopped more frequently online in Q4 2008 than in the year prior. To support this, more than half of survey respondents experienced a positive online sales response to their implementation of EV SSL. One in four reported an increase in traffic, and one in five reported an increase in online sales. Of the 32 companies that specifically measured their increase in sales conversion rate, the average sales increase was 10 per cent.

VeriSign EV SSL Certificates offer a proven safeguard against phishing scams that continue to defraud customers. With EV SSL, Internet users with compatible high security Internet browsers see a green address bar that tells consumers they have reached a Web site whose authenticity has been verified by VeriSign.

"VeriSign EV SSL is a security tool that directly impacts the bottom line," said Armando Dacal, Director, Authentication Services, VeriSign Asia Pacific. "When 77 per cent of our customers can quantify strengthened consumer confidence through Web site traffic and sales increases, it is clear that even during uncertain times, the right tools can build trust between our customers and our customers' customers."

New consumer electronics Web site Big Brown Box (www.bigbrownbox.com.au) has seen significant growth since it was established nine months ago, with 800,000 Internet shoppers searching for products online to find the ultimate deal.

Big Brown Box makes sure its Web site reaches its full potential by increasing customer confidence through VeriSign's trusted and secure EV SSL Certificates. When visiting the site, online shoppers see a green address bar confirming they have reached an authentic Web site. Consumers are able to shop with confidence, knowing that their credit card details and personal information will not fall into the wrong hands.

Big Brown Box General Manager, Peter Krideras is delighted with the positive impact that VeriSign EV SSL is having on the overall business. "Our business is 100 per cent Internet led so it is vital that our customers trust our Web site. VeriSign provides a visible and reassuring solution that has significantly contributed to our large volume in sales."

Another advocate of VeriSign EV SSL is Kogan Technologies Pty Ltd, which provides Australian consumers with a convenient and cost-effective way to get the electronic goods they need without the middleman. Kogan Technologies found that on average, customers were 30 per cent more likely to make a purchase from the Kogan Web site when he or she was using an EV SSL-enabled browser.

Note to editors: Galaxy undertook this qualitative research on behalf of VeriSign with VeriSign's Australian customer database in July 2009.